WO2022185560A1

WO2022185560A1 - Force sense presentation device

Info

Publication number: WO2022185560A1
Application number: PCT/JP2021/025125
Authority: WO
Inventors: 祐太香田
Original assignee: 株式会社ソニー・インタラクティブエンタテインメント
Priority date: 2021-03-02
Filing date: 2021-07-02
Publication date: 2022-09-09
Also published as: JPWO2022185560A1

Abstract

A force sense presentation device 1 comprises: a base 2 gripped by the hand of a user; a movable part 3 having a finger placement section 5 on which the user places a fingertip while gripping the base 2; and a movement mechanism that moves the movable part 3 in relation to the base 2. The base 2 is held between two or more fingers. The finger placement section 5 has a finger engagement part 4 raised up in a direction differing from the movement direction of the movable part 3.

Description

Haptic device

The present invention relates to a device that is held by a user's hand and presents the user with a haptic sensation.

In Patent Document 1, the user inserts his or her index finger into a ring fixed to a base, holds the movable portion with the thumb, index finger, and middle finger, and moves the movable portion with respect to the base. Disclosed is a pen-type haptic presentation device that presents proprioception to a finger.

JP 2010-287221 A

In the force sense presentation device disclosed in Patent Literature 1, the user inserts the index finger into the ring and fixes the hand to the base so that proprioception is presented to the finger gripping the movable part. Become. Therefore, if the size of the user's index finger and the inner diameter of the ring do not match, the user's hand cannot be properly fixed to the base.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a haptic presentation device that is easy for users to use.

In order to solve the above problems, a haptic presentation device according to one aspect of the present invention is a movable part having a base to be gripped by a user's hand and a finger placement part for the user to place a fingertip while gripping the base. and a moving mechanism for moving the movable part with respect to the base.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which a user holds the haptic device. 1 is a side view of a force sense presentation device; FIG. It is a figure which shows the state which put the finger|toe on the movable part. It is a figure which shows the moving mechanism which makes a movable part move relatively with respect to a base|substrate. It is a figure which shows the example of a switch mechanism. It is a figure which shows the functional block of a haptic device. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a pushing member; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which a user holds the haptic device. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which a user holds the haptic device. 1 is a side view of a force sense presentation device; FIG. It is a figure which shows the moving mechanism which carries out the relative rotational movement of a movable part with respect to a base|substrate. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the inclination of the support base frame when the haptic device is viewed from the front; It is a figure which shows the functional block of a haptic device. It is a figure which shows the modification of a moving mechanism. It is a figure which shows the modification of a moving mechanism. It is a figure which shows a wire direct-acting mechanism.

(Example 1)
FIG. 1 shows a state in which a user holds the haptic presentation device 1 of the first embodiment. FIG. 1(a) shows the haptic device 1 viewed from the front, and FIG. 1(b) shows the haptic device 1 viewed from the side. A haptic presentation device 1 includes a base 2 that is held by a user's hand, and a movable portion 3 that is relatively movable with respect to the base 2 . The haptic presentation device 1 is a pen-shaped haptic device, and the base 2 has two side surfaces arranged substantially parallel to each other. A user uses the force sense presentation device 1 in a state in which both sides of the base body 2 are held between the thumb and the middle finger and the index finger is placed on the movable part 3 .

The haptic presentation device 1 is used, for example, as a virtual pen that ejects ink in a drawing application that draws pictures and letters on a whiteboard installed in a virtual space. In this drawing application, the tip of the haptic device 1 corresponds to the pen tip of the virtual pen, and when the pen tip contacts a virtual object such as a whiteboard in the virtual space, the movable part 3 moves relative to the base 2. , and a haptic is presented to the user's index finger. By presenting the haptic, the user can recognize that he/she can start drawing pictures or characters.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the force sense presentation device 1. FIG. In the haptic device 1, the side on which the movable part 3 is provided is defined as the front end side, and the left side is called the front side and the right side is called the rear side in the side view shown in FIG. In the state shown in FIG. 2, the movable portion 3 is at the position where it protrudes forward most from the base 2, and this position is the "reference position" of the movable portion 3. As shown in FIG.

On the upper surface of the movable part 3, a finger rest part 5 is provided for placing the tip of the index finger while the user is gripping the base body 2. A finger engaging portion 4 with which the tip of a finger is engaged is provided at the front end of the finger rest portion 5 . The finger engaging portion 4 is erected in a direction different from the direction of movement of the movable portion 3 (that is, the front-rear direction). It is The finger engaging portion 4 has a curved surface 4a that is inclined along the pad of the finger and has a curvature. Since the curved surface 4a is inclined with respect to the upper surface of the movable part 3 and is concave in the direction in which the fingertip is brought into contact, the user can stably bring the tip of the index finger into contact with the curved surface 4a. can.

The user holds both sides of the base body 2 with the thumb and middle finger as if holding a pen, and places the pad of the index finger on the finger rest portion 5 . Therefore, the user can place the index finger on the finger rest portion 5 regardless of the dominant hand. Note that the user may hold the base 2 with three or more fingers and place the pads of other fingers, which are not mainly involved in holding the base 2 , on the finger rest portion 5 . In this way, the base body 2 of the force sense presentation device 1 is gripped by two or more fingers, so that the base body 2 can be fixed to the hand without requiring a special gripping mechanism for fixing the base body 2 to the hand. can.

FIG. 3(a) shows a state in which the finger is placed on the movable part 3 at the reference position. When the user puts the pad of the finger on the finger placing portion 5, the tip portion of the finger fits and contacts the curved surface 4a. Since the tip portion of the finger abuts against the finger engaging portion 4 in this way, when the movable portion 3 moves in the direction in which the movable portion 3 is pulled into the base 2 , the finger is reliably moved together with the finger engaging portion 4 .

FIG. 3(b) shows a state in which the movable part 3 moves in the direction in which it is drawn into the base 2. As shown in FIG. When the movable part 3 moves, the fingertip part moves in conjunction with the movable part 3 due to the frictional force acting between it and the finger rest part 5, but is erected in the direction perpendicular to the moving direction. By contacting the finger engaging part 4 which is in contact with the moving part 3, the movement of the movable part 3 is surely interlocked.

4 shows a moving mechanism 30 that moves the movable part 3 relative to the base 2. FIG. 4A shows the state of the moving mechanism 30 when the movable portion 3 is at the reference position, and FIG. 4B shows the state of the moving mechanism 30 when the movable portion 3 is retracted from the reference position. show.

The moving mechanism 30 includes a rotary actuator 10, a feed screw 12, a nut 14, a guide mechanism 16, a rod 18, a fixed portion 20 and a rotation angle sensor 22, and slides the movable portion 3 in the longitudinal direction of the base 2. In the moving mechanism 30, the rotary actuator 10 rotates the feed screw 12 forward or backward, thereby moving the nut 14 in the axial direction of the feed screw 12 (longitudinal direction of the base 2). A plurality of rods 18 are fixed to the nut 14 , and a fixed portion 20 fixed to the fixed portion of the movable portion 3 is attached to the distal end portion of the rod 18 . The rod 18 is guided in movement in the advancing direction by a guide mechanism 16 fixed to the inner wall of the base 2 . A rotation angle sensor 22 detects the rotation angle of the rotary actuator 10 , and the movement of the movable part 3 is controlled based on the detected value of the rotation angle sensor 22 .

FIG. 5 shows an example of a switch mechanism 40 for user operation input. The haptic presentation device 1 of Example 1 includes a switch mechanism 40 that can be operated by a fingertip placed on the finger placement portion 5 . The switch mechanism 40 may be configured as a tactile switch having a contact structure 40b, and the user turns on the switch by pressing a push-type operation button 40a. It should be noted that the switch mechanism 40 may have other types of structures.

The operation button 40a operated by the user is provided on the finger rest portion 5 on the rear side of the curved surface 4a. In a drawing application for drawing pictures and characters on a whiteboard installed in a virtual space, the operation button 40a may be used as an operation member for ejecting ink.

By providing the operation button 40a on the finger rest portion 5, the user can freely operate the operation button 40a with the index finger while holding the base body 2 between the thumb and the middle finger. The switch mechanism 40 has a spring member that biases the operation button 40a upward, and is configured so that the contact structure 40b is not turned on simply by placing the index finger on the operation button 40a. Since the tip of the index finger is not mainly involved in holding the force sense presentation device 1, the user can press the index finger placed on the finger rest 5 at any timing to operate the switch mechanism 40.

FIG. 6 shows functional blocks of the force sense presentation device 1. FIG. The control unit 50 controls operations of the force sense presentation device 1 . The communication unit 52 transmits and receives data between the processing device that executes the drawing application and the haptic device 1 . When the user brings the tip of the virtual pen into contact with the whiteboard in the virtual space, the drawing application provides the haptic device 1 with reaction force data for generating reaction force due to the contact. The positional coordinates of the haptic device 1 in real space may be tracked using an external camera, or self-position may be estimated using a built-in IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) or camera. When the communication unit 52 receives the reaction force data, the control unit 50 controls the rotary actuator 10 while monitoring the detection value of the rotation angle sensor 22 to move the movable unit 3 at the reference position in the direction to pull it into the base 2. Let As a result, the index finger of the user receives a pressing force from the finger engaging portion 4, and the user recognizes that the pen tip has come into contact with the whiteboard.

In this state, when the user operates the operation button 40a to activate the switch mechanism 40, the communication unit 52 transmits data indicating switch-on to the processing device. This allows the user to draw pictures and characters on the whiteboard using the virtual pen. By using the haptic presentation device 1 of the first embodiment in this manner, the user can enjoy drawing applications while feeling the force applied to the pen tip.

7 shows an example of the pushing member 6 provided on the movable part 3. FIG. The pushing member 6 is a member for presenting a force sensation to the palm of the hand, and is formed on the lower surface of the movable portion 3 . The pushing member 6 may be configured as a rod-shaped member that is pushed into the user's palm when the movable part 3 moves. FIG. 7(a) shows the movable part 3 at the reference position, and FIG. 7(b) shows the movable part 3 when moved in the direction in which it is pulled into the base 2. As shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 shows a state in which the user holds the force sense presentation device 1. FIG. In this example, the movable part 3 is at the reference position and protrudes farthest forward from the base body 2 . When the moving mechanism 30 moves the movable part 3 in the retracting direction from this state, the end of the pushing member 6 presses against the user's palm. In this manner, the force sense presentation device 1 presents a force sense using not only the finger engaging portion 4 but also the pressing member 6, so that the user can feel more reaction force from the virtual object.

(Example 2)
In the first embodiment, the movement mechanism 30 moves the movable part 3 in the longitudinal direction of the base 2 to present the reaction force when the tip of the virtual pen contacts the virtual object (whiteboard) in the virtual space. . In the second embodiment, the movement mechanism has a function of rotating the movable part around an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the base in order to present frictional force when the pen tip of the virtual pen moves on the virtual object.

FIG. 9 shows a state in which the user holds the haptic presentation device 100 of the second embodiment. The force sense presentation device 100 includes a base 102 that is held by a user's hand, and a movable part 103 that is relatively movable with respect to the base 102 . The haptic presentation device 100 is a pen-shaped haptic device, and the substrate 102 has two side surfaces arranged substantially parallel to each other. The user uses the force sense presentation device 100 with both sides of the base 102 held between the thumb and middle finger and the index finger placed on the movable portion 103 . The movable part 103 in Example 2 can move relative to the base 102 in the longitudinal direction of the base 102 and can rotate relative to the axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the base 102 .

A switch installation member 106 having a switch mechanism 107 is provided on the side surface of the base 102, and the user touches the surface of the switch installation member 106 with the middle finger. The switch mechanism 107 has push-type operation buttons and may have the same structure as the switch mechanism 40 of the first embodiment. The user can turn on the switch by pressing the operation button with the middle finger.

As with the haptic presentation device 1 of the first embodiment, the haptic presentation device 100 of the second embodiment serves as a virtual pen that ejects ink in a drawing application for drawing pictures and letters on a whiteboard installed in a virtual space. may be used. In the drawing application, the sliding movement of the movable part 103 with respect to the base 102 presents a force sensation in the pushing direction of the pen tip to the index finger, and the rotational movement of the movable part 103 with respect to the base 102 causes A force sense (corresponding to frictional force applied to the pen tip) is presented to the index finger in the direction opposite to the direction in which the pen tip moves on the whiteboard. By presenting the haptic sensation, the user can feel that he or she is drawing a picture or writing by moving the virtual pen.

10 is a perspective view of the force sense presentation device 100. FIG. In the force sense presentation device 100, the side on which the movable portion 103 is provided is defined as the distal end side. In the state shown in FIG. 10, the movable portion 103 is at the position where it protrudes most forward from the base 102, and this position is the "reference position" of the movable portion 103. As shown in FIG. In the state shown in FIG. 10, the rotation angle of the movable portion 103 is zero, and this posture is the “reference posture” of the movable portion 103 .

A finger rest part 105 is provided on the top surface of the movable part 103 for the user to place the tip of the index finger while gripping the base 102 . Finger engaging portions 104 with which the tips of the fingers are engaged are provided on both side portions and the front end portion of the finger rest portion 105 . The finger engaging portion 104 is formed in different directions from the two moving directions of the movable portion 103, that is, the longitudinal direction of the base 102 and the rotating direction about the axis parallel to the longitudinal direction. Specifically, the finger engaging portion 104 is erected on the upper surface of a beam member of a support base frame 112, which will be described later. The finger engaging portion 104 has a curved surface 104a that is slanted along the pad of the finger and has a curvature. Since the curved surface 104a is inclined with respect to the upper surface of the beam member and concave in the direction in which the fingertip is brought into contact, the user can stably bring the tip of the index finger into contact with the curved surface 104a.

The user holds both sides of the base 102 with the thumb and middle finger as if holding a pen, places the pad of the index finger on the finger rest portion 105, and places the pad of the middle finger on the surface of the switch mounting member 106. Note that the user may hold the substrate 102 with three or more fingers and place the pad of another finger, which is not mainly involved in holding the substrate 102 , on the finger rest portion 105 . In this way, the base 102 of the force sense presentation device 100 is held by two or more fingers, so that the base 102 can be fixed to the hand without requiring a special grasping mechanism for fixing the base 102 to the hand. can.

FIG. 11 shows a moving mechanism 120 that rotates the movable portion 103 relative to the base 102 . The moving mechanism 120 includes a rotary actuator 110, a support frame 112, a base 114, a stopper 116, and a rotation angle sensor 118, and rotates the movable portion 103 about its axis. The fixed portion 20 shown in FIG. 4 is fixed to the fixed portion 122 of the movable portion 103 so that the movable portion 103 can be slidably moved by the moving mechanism 30 .

The base portion 114 is fixed to the housing of the movable portion 103 and rotatably supports the support base frame 112 on which the finger rest portion 105 is installed. The support base frame 112 has a portal structure including a pair of pillar members and a beam member connecting the pair of pillar members. A finger rest part 105 is mounted on the upper surface. The rotary actuator 110 is fixed to the base 114 and the motor shaft is connected to one post of the support frame 112 . In the movement mechanism 120, the rotation actuator 110 rotates forward or backward, so that the support base frame 112 rotates rightward or leftward when the haptic device 100 is viewed from the front. A pair of stoppers 116 are formed on the base portion 114 , and the stoppers 116 restrict the rotation of the support base frame 112 . A rotation angle sensor 118 detects the rotation angle of the rotary actuator 110 , and the rotation of the movable part 103 is controlled based on the detection value of the rotation angle sensor 118 .

FIG. 12 shows the inclination of the support base frame 112 when the haptic device 100 is viewed from the front.
FIG. 12(a) shows the base 114 and the support frame 112 in the reference posture. In the reference posture, the rotation angle is 0 degree.
FIG. 12(b) shows a state in which the support base frame 112 is rotated counterclockwise with respect to the base 114. FIG. The support base frame 112 is restricted from rotating by a stopper 116, and the maximum rotation angle when rotating to the left may be -45 degrees.
FIG. 12(c) shows a state in which the support base frame 112 is rotated to the right with respect to the base 114. FIG. The rotation of the support base frame 112 is limited by a stopper 116, and the maximum rotation angle during clockwise rotation may be +45 degrees.

FIG. 13 shows functional blocks of the force sense presentation device 100. FIG. The control unit 50 controls operations of the force sense presentation device 100 . The communication unit 52 transmits and receives data between the processing device that executes the drawing application and the haptic device 100 . When the user brings the pen tip of the virtual pen into contact with the whiteboard in the virtual space and moves the pen tip on the whiteboard, the drawing application receives the reaction force data for generating the reaction force due to the pen movement. Provided to the presentation device 100 . When the communication section 52 receives the reaction force data, the control section 50 controls the rotary actuator 10 while monitoring the detection value of the rotation angle sensor 22 to move the movable section 103 at the reference position in the direction to pull it into the base 102. and/or the rotation actuator 110 is controlled while monitoring the detection value of the rotation angle sensor 118 to rotate the support base frame 112 in the reference posture. As a result, the index finger of the user receives a pressing force and/or a rotating force from the finger engaging portion 4, and the user feels that the pen is being moved on the whiteboard.

When the user operates the switch mechanism 107 in that state, the communication unit 52 transmits data indicating that the switch is turned on to the processing device. This allows the user to draw pictures and characters on the whiteboard using the virtual pen. By using the haptic presentation device 100 of the second embodiment in this manner, the user can enjoy drawing applications while feeling the force applied to the pen tip.

The present invention has been described above based on multiple examples. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the above embodiments are examples, and that various modifications can be made to combinations of each component and each treatment process, and such modifications are within the scope of the present invention. .

For example, the vibrator may be provided on the

substrate

2, 102 held by the user. This enables the force

sense presentation devices

1 and 100 to present the user with a tactile sense stimulus due to vibration. When presenting the haptic sensation, the

haptic presentation devices

1 and 100 may output a sound representing the contact sound from the built-in speaker.

In the first embodiment, the moving mechanism 30 uses the feed screw 12 to move the movable part 3 in the front-rear direction. You can move to

14 and 15 show a modification of the moving mechanism 30. FIG. The moving mechanism 30 has a reel 60 , a first pulley 62 , a second pulley 64 , a third pulley 66 , a fixed member 70 and a linear slider 72 . FIG. 16 shows a wire direct-acting mechanism extracted from the moving mechanism 30. As shown in FIG. A wire 68 is wound around a reel 60 , a first pulley 62 , a second pulley 64 and a third pulley 66 that constitute a wire linear motion mechanism, and the wire 68 moves as the reel 60 rotates. The user can adjust the wire tension so that the wire 68 is not loosened by operating the tension adjusting screw 74 to move the position of the third pulley 66 .

A fixed portion (not shown) fixed to the fixed portion of the movable portion 3 is provided at the tip portion of the fixed member 70 . The fixed member 70 is fixed to the wire 68, and the linear slider 72 regulates the moving direction of the fixed member 70 in the front-rear direction. In the moving mechanism 30 of the modified example, the rotation actuator 10 rotates the reel 60 forward or backward to move the wire 68 in the front-rear direction, thereby moving the movable part 3 fixed to the fixing member 70 in the front-rear direction. Realized. Since the wire direct-acting mechanism in the modified example is less susceptible to frictional resistance, it can present an accurate force sensation with a small hysteresis.

The present invention can be used for a device that is gripped by a user's hand and presents a force sensation to the user.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Force sense presentation apparatus 2... Base|substrate 3... Movable part 4... Finger engagement part 4a... Curved surface 5... Finger rest part 6... Pushing member, 10... Rotary actuator, 12... Feed screw, 14... Nut, 16... Guide mechanism, 18... Rod, 20... Fixed part, 22... Rotation angle sensor , 30... Moving mechanism, 40... Switch mechanism, 40a... Operation button, 40b... Contact structure, 50... Control unit, 52... Communication unit, 60... Reel, 62 1st pulley 64 2nd pulley 66 3rd pulley 68 wire 70 fixing member 72 linear slider 74 tension adjusting screw , 100... Force sense presentation device 102... Base body 103... Movable part 104... Finger engagement part 104a... Curved surface 105... Finger rest part 106... Switch installation member 107 Switch mechanism 110 Rotary actuator 112 Support frame 114 Base 116 Stopper 118 Rotation angle sensor 120 - A movement mechanism, 122... A part to be fixed.

Claims

a base held by a user's hand;
a movable portion having a finger rest portion for a user to place a fingertip while gripping the base;
a moving mechanism for moving the movable part with respect to the base;
A haptic presentation device.
The substrate is held between two or more fingers,
The haptic presentation device according to claim 1, characterized by:
The finger rest part has a finger engaging part erected in a direction different from the moving direction of the movable part,
3. The haptic presentation device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that:
The finger engaging portion has a curved surface that contacts the fingertip,
4. The haptic presentation device according to claim 3, characterized in that:
comprising a switch mechanism that can be operated by a fingertip placed on the finger rest;
The force sense presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that:
The movable part has a pushing member for presenting a force sensation to the palm,
The force sense presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that:
The moving mechanism moves the movable part in the longitudinal direction of the base.
The haptic presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that:
The moving mechanism rotates the movable part around an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the base.
The force sense presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: